as we find ourselves at the mid-way point of Term 3… already! Term 3 is we find that students are most comfortable in their routine: They know what is expected, how to do it and how to seek help if needed before in Term 4 things begin to wind down. In German and Chinese students are happily engaged in their classroom activities where we strive to provide a friendly atmosphere for students to not only read, speak, listen and write in another language, but also get absorbed in the culture of their studies. And it rarely gets as hands on with culture as it does with the Languages Excursion…  

 

Excursion Report: 

Year 8 Language & Culture Excursion to the City

The end of Term 2 excursion to the city as part of the Year 8 investigations into German and Chinese food and culture was a great success for all involved. Students really enjoyed the opportunity to see the cultures of the language they study!

While the PTV may have seemed to have conspired against us by temporarily closing the Lilydale Railway line, they were in fact super-helpful in organising replacement buses to make our excursion possible. Meeting at Mooroolbark station was something new, but students enjoyed their own company and eagerly awaited the rest of the day. 

In the city we visited the Immigration Museum and the Hofbräuhaus with the German group and the Chinese students visited the Chinese Museum as well as the Shanghai Village Restaurant in Chinatown. As a picture speaks a thousand words, we’ll let you look over the attached pictures to get your own impression of the day. 

On reflection, we had over 100 students and six staff travelling happily and safely enjoying a fantastic day out on the town and we all made it back more or less on time for the end of term dismissal. What a great day out!  

Special thanks must go to Ms Guan and Mr Van Keulen for leading the Chinese and German groups respectively. Furthermore, we would like to show our gratitude to Mr Lorkin and Mr Bell for volunteering to come along for the day. Finally, to the parents: Thank you for the ongoing support of languages by permitting our students to attend for the day. We could not do it without any and all of you! 

   

Assessment, Reports and Parent Teacher Interviews: 

Staff are currently in the middle of ongoing assessments to prepare for Interim Reports and Parent Teacher Interviews held later this Term. For example, German students are currently completing Half-Way CATs for Coursework in class. These are audio recordings of a selection of questions to be found on the CAT 1 interviews. If you want to see your child’s progress in German or Chinese, just go to Compass and check if Coursework 1 and 2 have been marked off as satisfactory. We will be offering help and catch-up sessions to students to make sure no one falls behind and those that excel are extended. Please continue to monitor your CAT and Coursework status and feel free to contact us if you have questions and/or concerns. 

 

 

JONAS BAHLO

LANGUAGES KEY LEARNING HEAD